Date:         Thu, 30 Apr 2015 22:03:29 +0000
Reply-To:     Stephen Grisanti <bike2vcu@YAHOO.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Stephen Grisanti <bike2vcu@YAHOO.COM>
Subject:      Tire fun Miami-bound
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I was going to post on the most recent 14" tire thread about my own Wynstar Phaser RTL51 185R14C tires that were on the Westy when we bought it nine years ago, but after Friday decided not to.  They have served well and are still wearing like iron, but near the end of my Richmond-Miami run one failed catastrophically.  May not be the tire's fault, but I did not see an obstacle in the road and don't recall hitting anything suspicious.  The date code indicates '03 production, so I'd advise extreme caution when running older tires.  Might have been aging rubber or FOD (Foreign Object or Debris) in the roadway or, this being Miami, a bullet, but this seems like a sign from the heavens to replace all four tires.  Darn, I guess I'll have to use those CLK wheels sooner than anticipated. There I was on I-95, having just refueled and reentered the southbound lanes for the last leg to my cousin's place, when--and I NEVER thought I'd say this about I-95 traffic--I luckily hit the inevitable slowdown.  I was doing about 20 MPH when I heard a rumble and thought it was the grooved pavement but realized quickly what was up.  Got to the shoulder and off far enough for safety, then changed out the spare, an old Michelin long resting in the spare tire tray and now brought up to the majors.  Mid 80s temps and Florida humidity at a Friday afternoon bumper-to-bumper roadside, and me just hoping that the spare is holding air from the last time I checked.  Turned out okay and a new Nexen SV820 was ordered. I have one new tire and, more importantly, a spare for the trip home so can again deal with things as they arise.
So, take this as a cautionary tale about tires with some age on them, no matter how good they may look, no matter how observant you are about checking pressure and eyeballing the tread, and especially no matter how casually you jump in the van for that next 2,000 mile trip. And do be prepared to wait for a tire if you need this size, even in a major metro area like Miami. Only a couple of the six or so stores I contacted (Sears, Goodyear, Firestone and Tire Kingdom among them) could even recognize this size, and the guy I ordered from personally walked out to the van to verify the size on the sidewalls before proceeding. "I thought those were extinct," he said.
************************I've since received the new tire and made the trip home with no further problems.  Now for a new set.
Stephen